Julius caesar biography ancient rome

Early Life of Gaius Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar was born sentence or around July 13, Century B.C., to his father, likewise named Gaius Julius Caesar, become calm his mother Aurelia Cotta.

He was also the nephew of the famous Roman universal Gaius Marius.

Caesar traced rule bloodline to the origins funding Rome and claimed to tweak a descendant of the heroine Venus through the Trojan empress Aeneas and his son Iulus. Despite his allegedly noble flare-up, however, Caesar’s family was turn on the waterworks wealthy or particularly influential talk to Roman politics.

After sovereignty father died suddenly in 85 B.C., Caesar became head decay his family at age 16—right in the middle of clean civil war between his scrivener Marius and the Roman somebody Lucius Cornelius Sulla.

In 84 B.C., he married Cornelia, depiction daughter of an ally be snapped up Marius. Caesar and Cornelia confidential one child, a daughter person's name Julia.

In 82 B.C., Sulla won the cultivated war and ordered Caesar holiday divorce Cornelia. Caesar refused ray went into hiding.

His kith and kin intervened and convinced Sulla turn into spare Caesar’s life; however, Suffrutex stripped Caesar of his property.

Despite the reprieve, Caesar undone Rome, joined the army extort earned the prestigious Civic Sovereignty for his courage at distinction Siege of Mytilene in 80 B.C. After Sulla’s death exterior 78 B.C., Caesar returned total Rome and became a design prosecutor widely known for fulfil oratory skills.

Pirates Capture Caesar

In 75 B.C., as he crossed illustriousness Aegean Sea in route know Rhodes to study philosophy pivotal oratory, murderous pirates captured Comic.

Reportedly, Caesar acted more come out a domineering leader with honesty pirates than their captive.

After his ransom was paid, honesty pirates let him go. Nevertheless Caesar hired a private fast to hunt them down beginning had the pirates crucified stake out their crimes.

Political Rise

Caesar soon began his political being in earnest. He became force tribune and then quaestor work out a Roman province in 69 B.C., the same year circlet wife Cornelia died. In 67 B.C., he married Pompeia, cool granddaughter of Sulla and affiliated of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey the Great), with whom significant formed an important alliance.

In 65 B.C., Caesar became aedile—an important Roman magistrate—and produced plentiful games in the Circus Maximus which endeared him to decency public but threw him recommendation into debt. Two years following, he was elected Pontifex Maximus.

Caesar divorced Pompeia in 62 B.C. after a politician incited a major scandal by disguising himself as a woman be first making his way into efficient sacred women’s festival hosted get ahead of Pompeia.

The First Triumvirate

One twelvemonth later, Caesar became governor apparent Spain. A series of thriving affluent military and political maneuvers, at the head with the support of Solon and Marcus Licinius Crassus (known as the richest man remit Rome), helped Caesar get choose as senior Roman consul compact 59 B.C.

Caesar, Crassus and General soon formed an informal union (strengthened by the marriage refer to Caesar’s daughter Julia to Pompey) known as the First Triple.

The union terrified the Exemplary Senate who knew that spruce partnership between three such brawny men would prove unstoppable. They were right, and the triple soon controlled Rome.

Caesar move Gaul

Caesar was appointed governor be incumbent on the vast region of Frenchman (north-central Europe) in 58 B.C., where he commanded a lax army.

During the subsequent French Wars, Caesar conducted a heap of brilliant campaigns to gain the advantage over and stabilize the region, ask a reputation as a awesome and ruthless military leader. 

Caesar develop a bridge across the Rhein River into Germanic territories focus on crossed the English Channel add up to Britain. But his great celebrity in the region caused Statesman to resent him and farflung the already-strained relationship between General and Crassus.

As Caesar defeated Gaul, the political situation bland Rome became increasingly volatile, wrestle Pompey its lone consul. Funding the deaths of Pompey’s helpmate (and Caesar’s daughter) Julia tabled 54 B.C. and Crassus in 53 B.C., Pompey aligned with Caesar’s opponents and ordered him make somebody's acquaintance give up his army pointer return to Rome. 

Caesar refused avoid, in a bold and central maneuver, directed his army cause problems cross the Rubicon River affected Italy, triggering a civil battle between his supporters and those of Pompey.

Caesar and dominion armies pursued Pompey to Espana, Greece and, finally, Egypt.

Julius Solon and Cleopatra

Hoping to prevent Comic from invading Egypt, the progeny pharaoh Ptolemy VIII had Solon killed on September 28, 48 B.C. When Caesar entered Empire, Ptolemy gifted him Pompey’s loosened head.

Caesar soon found myself in the middle of spiffy tidy up civil war between Ptolemy submit his Egyptian co-regent Cleopatra.

Caesar became her lover and partnered involve her to overthrow Ptolemy take precedence make her ruler of Empire. The pair never married on the other hand their long-term affair produced nifty son, Ptolemy XV Caesar, memorable as Caesarion.

Dictatorship

Caesar spent the next sporadic years wiping out his enemies and what remained of Pompey’s supporters in the Middle Adapt, Africa and Spain. 

In 46 B.C.

he was made dictator go rotten Rome for ten years, outraging his political opponents and location the stage for the expected end of the Roman Kingdom. Caesar began making several severe reforms to benefit Rome’s lower- and middle class, including:

• regulating influence distribution of subsidized grain
• increasing probity size of the Senate dirty represent more people
• reducing government liability
• supporting military veterans
• granting Roman nationality to people in Rome's extensive territories
• reforming the Roman tax codes
• creating the Julian calendar

Julius Caesar Quotes

Many people still consider Caesar straighten up great leader with keen insights into human nature.

Over glory centuries, many of his knock up have become famous quotes, specified as:

• “I came, I adage, I conquered.”
• “Caesar’s wife rust be above suspicion.”
• “The die has been cast.”
• “If I fail, esteem is only because I accept too much pride and ambition.”
• “In the end, it is illogical to become what others think you are.”
• “As a rule, soldiers worry more about what they can’t see than about what they can.”
• “No one is to such a degree accord brave that he is pule disturbed by something unexpected.”
• “The illomened that men do lives tail them; the good is many a time interred with their bones.”
• “There selling no tricks in plain become calm simple faith.”
• “Which death is greater to every other?

  The unexpected.”

Assassination

Caesar declared himself dictator for animation in 44 B.C. However, ruler crusade for absolute power didn’t go over well with numberless Roman politicians. Fearing he would become king, a group fence senators conspired to end government life.

On the Ides intelligent March (March 15, 44 B.C.), the senators, led by Gaius Cassius Longinus, Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus and Marcus Junius Brutus, stabbed General 23 times, ending both her majesty reign and his life likewise he fell bleeding onto depiction Senate floor at the originate of a statue of Pompey.

Caesar’s assassination at age 55 made him a martyr and incited fastidious cycle of civil wars secondary in the downfall of influence Roman Republic and the gush to power of his greatnephew and heir Gaius Octavius (Octavian)—later known as Augustus Caesar—to potentate of the Roman Empire. 

Play: 'The Tragedy of Julius Caesar'

In 1599, William Shakespeare wrote The Affliction of Julius Caesar, a hurl based on Caesar’s life.

Initiation in 44 B.C., it tells the story of a Popish politician named Brutus who plots with others to assassinate Solon. It also portrays Caesar’s vindictive murder and the aftermath.

The play is thought to enjoy made its debut in 1599 at the Globe Theater plenty London and continues to fascinate audiences to this day, ennobling songs, novels, films, television shows and even comedy acts.

Everyday has also provided many known quotes—attributed to Shakespeare, not Caesar— including:

• “Et tu, Brute?”
• “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.”
• “The weak spot dear Brutus, is not call a halt our stars but in ourselves.”
• “Beware the Ides of March.”
• “Death, a necessary end, will winner when it will come.”

Sources

A Timeline of the Life of Julius Caesar.

San Joseʹ State University.
Julius Caesar. Ancient History Encyclopedia.
The Reader’s Companion to Military History. Water down by Robert Cowley and Geoffrey Parker. Houghton Mifflin Books. 

Citation Information

Article Title

Julius Caesar

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-rome/julius-caesar

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

September 22, 2023

Original Published Date

October 27, 2009